Blog Archive
Context and Perspective
Two words stand out for me in the movie Beautiful Mind, when Russell Crowe, playing the Nobel Laureate mathematician John Nash says:
Adam Smith said the best result comes,
from everyone in the group
doing what's best for himself, right?
That's what he said, right?
Incomplete, incomplete...
Those two words, incomplete, incomplete illustrate how our diverse world views, are only part of the picture, each just a unique perspective for the same context... or perhaps a unique context for the same perspective! How might we open our minds to changing perspective AND context?
One plus one is two, right? Incomplete, incomplete! Let's explore context...
- 1 plus 1 is 11 if two ones are put side by side.
- 1 plus 1 is 10 if counting in binary.
- 1 triangle plus 1 triangle is 4 triangles, if formed into a tetrahedron (see video).
For any statement, especially any dogma, we must ask, within what context? Adam Smith was both right and wrong. Nash challenges us to explore the context of the whole ecosystem as well as the perspective or logic. He challenges us to be eco−logical and consider not just what's best for me, but what's best for the whole system.
Indigenous knowledge emphasises the eco of eco-logical, and scientific knowledge emphasises the logical of eco-logical. Just a difference in context and perspective. Both kinds of knowledge are valid and both incomplete, incomplete! Can we open our minds to changing perspective AND context? Yes!
Jade Gibson's MSc dissertation Standing in Both Worlds: Exploring Hapū-led Biosecurity Management at Whareponga stands in both Indigenous and scientific worlds:
The research highlights the synergies and synchronicities between western scientific knowledge and Mātauranga and demonstrates how the holistic, interwoven nature of Mātauranga can be applied alongside western science to develop innovative solutions.
As we grow up, we strive for, typically ego-logical, self-sufficiency. Gradually, we realise self-sufficiency is incomplete, incomplete. We are all interdependent, where my success DEPENDS on your success. How can we be eco-logical and strive for shared-sufficiency?
Kataraina Pipi is a Kairukuwai, a facilitator of learning, growth and healing through music. Working towards her degree in Master of Applied Indigenous Knowledge she wrote and recorded Courageous Journey in which she sings:
Don’t be afraid, you can be yourself, let who you are, be your guiding star.
She speaks to the ego-logical youth, with the next verse adding a wider, eco-logical imperative for the village, the community:
It’s all about the next generation, for they know, what they know
The world will be a better place, when we find a way to claim the space for them…
We have a collective responsibility to find a way to model being eco-logical, caring for the space, the place, the home.
Andrew Melville's Masters of Management Studies dissertation title expresses the challenge:
Full of Holes or Full of Wholes? Exploring the Usefulness of Metaphor in Contemporary Aotearoa New Zealand Leadership
He explains, As a Pākehā researcher, I look to the natural world for metaphor to assist in navigating the complexity and unfolding nature of relationships between Te Ao Māori and the Pākehā world.
Of course, metaphor is incomplete, incomplete!, but metaphor opens our minds to changing perspective AND context. Aristotle said being a master of metaphor is a sign of genius. Perhaps most indigenous teachers would agree.
Metaphor, though incomplete, helps us to be eco-logical.
Next:Value for Investment, Emergently
A discussion how to evaluate emergence, with reference to Value for Investment (VfI) as developed by Julian King based on his doctoral research.